Foundation Model Series: Building New Materials for Climate with Jonathan Godwin from Orbital Materials

AI is unlocking the future of materials science and today’s guest Jonathan Godwin, co-founder and CEO of Orbital Materials, is at the forefront of this transformation. With a background in AI research and experience leading groundbreaking projects at Google-owned DeepMind, Jonathan is now applying machine learning to develop advanced materials that can drive decarbonization.

In this episode, he explains how Orbital Materials is using foundation models (like ChatGPT for language or MidJourney for images) to design new materials that capture carbon, store energy, and improve industrial efficiency. He also shares insights into the company’s mission, the challenges of simulating atomic-level interactions, and why open-sourcing their model, Orb, is crucial for innovation.

To discover how AI is revolutionizing the fight against climate change and learn how these cutting-edge materials could shape a more sustainable future, don’t miss this inspiring conversation with Jonathan Godwin!

Key Points:

• Insight into Jonathan’s diverse career path and how it led him to Orbital Materials.
• What types of advanced materials Orbital develops and their potential impact.
• The critical role AI plays in developing materials for decarbonization purposes.
• Defining foundation models and why they’re an essential part of leveraging AI.
• 3D atomic simulations and other types of data that go into Orbital’s foundation model.
• The computing infrastructure required to build a foundation model for materials.
• Engineering and other challenges encountered while building models at this scale. 
• How AI enhances scientific discovery without replacing human expertise.
• Why open-sourcing Orbital’s foundation model, Orb, is key for innovation.
• Lessons from developing this model that could be applied to other data types.
• Jonathan’s detail-oriented advice for leaders of AI-powered startups.
• Orbital’s exciting mission to accelerate new materials development.

Quotes:

“We develop materials that can capture CO2 from specific gas streams – coming out of an industrial facility, new energy storage technologies that allow – [data centers] to operate behind the meter, or ways to improve the water efficiency of a data center or industrial facility.” — Jonathan Godwin

“Foundation models are the crux of how we're able to leverage AI in this day and age. If you want to [say], 'We're pushing the limits of what AI is able to do. We're leveraging the most recent breakthroughs,' – you've got to be building foundation models or using foundation models.” — Jonathan Godwin

“AI is a massively powerful creativity aid and accelerant. We’ve seen that in other areas of AI and we're bringing that to advanced materials.” — Jonathan Godwin

Links:

Orbital Materials

Orbital Materials on LinkedIn

Orbital Materials on X

Orbital Materials on GitHub

Jonathan Godwin on LinkedIn

Jonathan Godwin on X

Jonathan Godwin Substack

Resources for Computer Vision Teams:

LinkedIn – Connect with Heather.

Computer Vision Insights Newsletter – A biweekly newsletter to help bring the latest machine learning and computer vision research to applications in people and planetary health.

Computer Vision Strategy Session – Not sure how to advance your computer vision project? Get unstuck with a clear set of next steps. Schedule a 1 hour strategy session now to advance your project.